Chapter 296: Who on Earth Did You Lend Money To?
Chapter 296: Who on Earth Did You Lend Money To?
Ju Yang froze mid-stride on his way back to the message center.
His heart hammered against his ribs so violently he thought it might burst. The memory of Geom Mu-geuk’s chilling gaze and the image of that coin piercing through his own palm refused to leave his mind.
One of the swordsmen accompanying him paused. “Aren’t you coming, sir?”
“Go on ahead. And keep your mouth shut about what happened today.”
“Understood!”
Ju Yang dismissed the men and sank onto the roadside. Having never experienced such a humiliation, he felt a volatile cocktail of rage, wounded pride, and sheer, unadulterated terror.
The message center was his true calling.
He relished the feeling of being an absolute master whenever people groveled before him, begging for a loan. There was nothing more entertaining than coaxing them into ruin with sweet, honeyed words.
And when they wailed and pleaded because they couldn't pay a few cents of interest? He felt a profound sense of superiority in the face of their misery. Controlling and manipulating the lives of others was his greatest joy.
But for the first time, the life he had lived with such arrogance felt threatened. More than the fear of his hand being pierced, he feared the possibility of losing his position.
How do I handle this?
He had to resolve this before word reached Jeokpae, the head of the message center. If Jeokpae found out… Ju Yang shuddered. Jeokpae was a man who held his subordinates accountable for every single cent of loss.
Geom Mu-geuk might pierce his hand, but Jeokpae would pierce his throat. That was simply the kind of man he was.
Just then, his eyes met those of some passing villagers. They flinched, bowed their heads in a frantic greeting, and hurried away. He could feel their terror in their scurrying footsteps.
Was he finally being punished for the lives he had ruined?
But Ju Yang was not the type for self-reflection. If he were, he wouldn't have ended up in this business in the first place. His thoughts took a darker turn.
I have to get rid of that debt collector. One way or another.
Recalling someone perfect for the job, he stood up abruptly and began to march. He cast even more venomous glares than usual at anyone unfortunate enough to cross his path.
*
The next day, Ju Yang did not show up to collect the money.
“I told him I’d come looking for him if he didn't show.”
Geom Mu-geuk went straight to the message center. Today, a different man sat in Ju Yang’s spot, handing out predatory loans. When asked about Ju Yang’s whereabouts, the man simply replied that he was out sick.
Geom Mu-geuk walked out to the center of the training ground and shouted.
“Ju Yang! I’m here to pay the interest, so come out! Ju Yang! Master Ju! The Great Hero Ju!”
At the commotion, the message center’s swordsmen poured out to watch. He’s here to pay interest? A debtor who isn't running away?
Nothing like this had happened since the message center opened. The guards watched with mocking curiosity.
“Ju Yang! Come out this instant!”
Having heard the shouting, Ju Yang finally rushed out of the main building.
“You!”
Unlike his cold demeanor from the day before, Geom Mu-geuk offered him a bright, cheerful smile.
“I heard you were sick, but you look perfectly fine to me.”
“Do you have any idea where you are, making such a scene?” Ju Yang hissed.
“Didn’t I say I’d come looking for you if you didn't show up?”
Ju Yang hadn't expected the man to actually show up and cause a ruckus. Does he have any idea who resides here? This place handles massive amounts of wealth—did he think there wouldn't be a master here to kill him?
The first thought that crossed Ju Yang’s mind—regardless of the man's skill—was simple:
This guy is insane.
Geom Mu-geuk held out his hand. “Now, take the interest.”
The watching swordsmen began to murmur. Those who had been at the inn the day before stepped back tensely, while the others snickered, eager for the entertainment.
It was then that a heavy voice cut through the air.
“Is it that guy?”
A man appeared, dragging a blood-covered body by one hand.
As soon as he stepped into the yard, the swordsmen bowed in unison. This was Jan-hak, the message center’s true enforcer.
Jan-hak was the one who stepped in whenever martial artists caused trouble. He was also the first person Ju Yang had sought out after returning yesterday.
His character was best summarized by a common joke: people claimed his name was short for Jan-hak-mu-do—cruel and inhuman. Some even believed it was his actual name.
That was the extent of Jan-hak’s cruelty. Anyone who had tried to resist the message center’s atrocities had died screaming at his hands.
“Yes, that’s him,” Ju Yang replied.
At the confirmation, Jan-hak threw the man he was dragging forward. The victim rolled helplessly across the dirt.
Geom Mu-geuk approached and knelt beside him. The man, whose body was a broken wreck, barely managed to flutter his eyes open.
“……Please, just kill me.”
Those were his first words.
How much agony must a man be in to beg a stranger for death?
On the other hand, Jan-hak looked perfectly relaxed.
“This guy was just as full of himself as you at first. He came flying over that wall and landed right in the middle of the yard. A real hero, he was.”
The watching swordsmen burst into laughter.
“He stood right there and gave a whole speech. Talking about justice, chivalry, and all that nonsense. He called us money-grubbing trash. He didn't even realize who the real trash was.”
At the word "trash," the fallen man twitched.
“……I am trash. I am trash,” he croaked.
These were the words Jan-hak had forcibly drilled into him through torture. The man was half-insane from the brutality.
Geom Mu-geuk inspected the man’s injuries.
His dantian was shattered, and the tendons in his limbs had been severed; he would spend the rest of his life bedridden. Even a Demon Doctor couldn't restore this body. These villains had committed acts no human should ever contemplate.
While Geom Mu-geuk was examining the man, Jan-hak approached silently. He had heard Ju Yang’s story about the coin. If it were true, the brat was a considerable master.
Jan-hak planned to suppress him with a surprise attack. He would strike while the man was defenseless, distracted by that dying piece of filth.
You idiot! What good is sentiment or morality? I’ll beat that nonsense right out of your head!
The moment Jan-hak leaped into the air to strike with a lethal palm...
Sshhh!
Thwack.
A sharp whistle of wind was followed by a sickening thud.
Boom!
Something embedded itself into the wall of the building behind them.
Crrraaaack.
The impact was so violent that spider-web cracks radiated across the masonry.
Ju Yang gasped in horror.
Embedded in the wall was a coin.
Blood dripped from the metal and ran down the wood.
Blood? Why blood? Could it be?
Ju Yang reflexively looked at Jan-hak.
The enforcer was still standing in the same spot. He was touching his forehead as if it were itchy. He seemed to be trying to say something, but only an unintelligible mumble escaped his lips.
A moment later, his body slowly toppled over.
Thud!
A torrent of blood poured from the hole in the dead man's forehead.
The coin had punched through Jan-hak’s skull, passed through the back of his head, and buried itself in the wall.
The crowd was paralyzed with horror.
They knew Jan-hak. They knew how many martial artists he had slaughtered and toyed with. And yet, he had died from a coin to the face without even being able to swing his sword? It felt so surreal it was as if they were watching a play.
Tears welled in the eyes of the tortured man. He had endured the agony with the single-minded goal of killing that monster if he ever escaped.
“You probably want to pay him back with the same torture, but he isn't even worth the effort,” Geom Mu-geuk said softly. “To do so would be to treat him like a human being, wouldn't it?”
As always, Geom Mu-geuk assigned no value to the death of a villain. To him, it was like moving a stone out of a path so he could continue his journey.
However, he did assign value to the man on the ground. Though they were strangers, he understood the man through his sacrifice.
“No one else climbed over that wall for the sake of others. Not the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, not the Unorthodox Path Alliance, not even the Orthodox Path Alliance. They were either uninterested, in league with these people, or dismissed it as a necessary evil.”
Geom Mu-geuk took the man’s hand firmly.
“You have lived a noble life. Thanks to you, many people will be freed from their suffering.”
A faint smile touched the man’s lips. With his eyes, he made one final request for the mercy of death, and Geom Mu-geuk accepted it. It was a mark of ultimate respect.
“Go in peace, Great Hero.”
Geom Mu-geuk placed his hand on the crown of the man’s head.
There was no pain in that touch. The man passed away with a peaceful expression.
After laying him down, Geom Mu-geuk stood up.
The men who had been snickering moments ago were now standing in deathly silence.
Ju Yang had expected him to explode in a storm of rage and wipe them all out, but Geom Mu-geuk was eerily calm. That made him even more terrifying.
Geom Mu-geuk held out the remaining coin to Ju Yang. “There’s one left. Should I give it to you? Or do you want to come and take it?”
Ju Yang knew that if the man "gave" it to him, it meant another coin would be embedded in his skull.
“No. I... I will take it.”
Ju Yang scrambled over and held out a trembling hand. His heart pounded so hard he felt dizzy.
In the tense silence, Geom Mu-geuk slowly placed the coin in his hand.
Ju Yang feared that this time, his palm might truly be shattered...
But today, the coin was placed lightly upon his skin.
“……What is it that you want?” Ju Yang whispered.
As if Ju Yang wasn't even worth an explanation, Geom Mu-geuk picked up the hero’s body and began to stride away.
“Make sure you come to collect the interest tomorrow.”
*
Ju Yang went straight to Jeokpae, the head of the message center.
To save his own life, he had to report this before anyone else did. If he didn't take the initial beating now, the later punishment would cost him his head.
Jeokpae did not live at the message center. He didn't consider a place with so much foot traffic to be safe.
He lived in a manor built like a fortress in a remote area. Layers of masters guarded him, and deep within the inner court was a palace of beauties. He was a man who knew exactly how to spend the blood money he earned.
Ju Yang took a deep breath in front of Jeokpae’s residence to steady his nerves. Having worked under the man for over ten years, he knew exactly what kind of monster he was. Jeokpae was the most selfish person Ju Yang knew, treating the lives of others like those of flies. It was likely why his business, King Yama’s Debt, had flourished.
The madman claiming to be the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult turned out to be a master.
When he delivered this report, Jeokpae would throw whatever was in his hand. If he were peeling an apple, it would be the knife; if he were painting, it would be the inkstone. He was the type to throw the stone, not the brush.
Fortunately, Jeokpae was busy clicking away at an abacus while looking at a ledger. He looked like a violent wolf, but he became a fox when it came to calculations.
It was wise to keep one's mouth shut when he was counting money.
The clicking of the abacus beads ceased.
“There was an incident involving a master,” Ju Yang began.
Jeokpae didn't seem particularly disturbed. How many times had a Murim master gotten involved in their business? They had always found a way to resolve it.
“A young man borrowed ten taels, and...”
“Ten taels?” Jeokpae looked up, staring at Ju Yang. He surely hadn't come over a mere ten-tael problem.
“Jan-hak died because of it.”
Whoosh. Thwack!
The abacus flew through the air and struck Ju Yang in the head. The corner caught him, and blood began to trickle down his forehead.
“Didn't I tell you to distinguish those who would be trouble from the start?”
“I am sorry.”
“A man who’s been eating the bread of King Yama’s Debt for so long can’t even handle one simple task.”
Ju Yang bowed his head, repeating his apologies.
“Who is he?”
“A madman claiming to be the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult.”
Thwack!
Something else flew and struck Ju Yang in the face.
“How does a madman kill Jan-hak?”
Ju Yang bowed his head again. But it’s not like the real Young Cult Leader killed him, is it? He swallowed the retort.
“How are you going to take responsibility?”
“I will accept any punishment.”
“You’re sure he’s not from the Cult?”
“The investigator sent word that he isn't. From what I’ve seen, he’s no demonic practitioner.”
Jeokpae gestured for Ju Yang to leave, as if he couldn't stand the sight of him. It was only because Ju Yang had been profitable lately that he was allowed to live.
Left alone, Jeokpae spoke softly to the shadows.
“Go find out for yourself. Deal with it.”
A short "Yes" came from behind the wall.
Jeokpae took a new abacus from his desk drawer and began calculating again.
“Why doesn't this add up?”
There were days when the calculations just wouldn't balance, no matter how many times he checked the ledger. Mistake after mistake. Today was one of those days.
*
The next day, Ju Yang rushed back to Jeokpae’s residence at his urgent summons.
Jeokpae was standing in the middle of the yard with a grim expression.
A corpse lay before him. It was his right-hand man—the shadow who had gone out on Jeokpae’s orders just yesterday.
Ju Yang knew well how much of a master he was. He was a subordinate Jeokpae had hired at great expense, someone who could have crushed Jan-hak with one hand.
And he also knew who had killed him.
Two coins were placed neatly on the corpse’s forehead.
It was as if the coins were speaking:
—Today’s interest has also been paid.
Ju Yang’s heart sank. The fear he had felt until yesterday was nothing compared to this. A primal terror rose from deep within his chest.
Ju Yang couldn't take his eyes off the metal.
“What are these coins?” Jeokpae asked, his voice low and dangerous.
The two coins had become the most terrifying things in the world.
“It’s today’s interest.”
Jeokpae glared at Ju Yang menacingly.
“You…… who on earth did you lend money to?”
Ju Yang had expected Jeokpae to react this way. He was a man who always looked for someone to blame.
You’re the one who sent someone to kill him!
Swallowing his words again, Ju Yang said, “I will go and find out what he wants.”
“Can’t you tell by looking at this? What he wants is our money. What other business would a master like that have with us?”
Jeokpae was convinced that anyone who opposed him was after his wealth. This assumption was surprisingly often correct.
“You said he claims to be a demonic practitioner?”
“He bluffed about being the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult.”
“You’re sure he’s not?”
“Absolutely not.”
At this point, Ju Yang even considered that the investigator’s report might be wrong. But he answered with "absolutely." He had to be sure.
In that case, Jeokpae’s solution was clear.
“A fake should be handled by the real thing.”
He had spent a fortune for a day like today.
“I’ll show him how terrifying the real Demonic Cult is.”